Meiji Yasuda, one of the largest and most well-known insurance companies in Japan, is teaming up with Microsoft Japan and Fujitsu to upgrade 30,000 insurance sales personnel from Windows XP to Windows 8 tablets for use as their mobile sales devices.

Meiji Yasuda’s goal is to enhance the way they engage their customers and deliver on a vision of serving customers anytime, anywhere, and doing so without giving up the benefit of a connected office experience. It’s that kind of powerful customer service they’re aiming to deliver by migrating from Windows XP to Windows 8 tablets starting in September.

In one of the largest Windows 8 tablet deployments in Japan this year, Meiji Yasuda will use Windows 8 Pro on custom-made Fujitsu tablets to deliver a rich and interactive experience directly to their customers. The tablets will enable insurance sales personnel to walk customers through their full product offering, collect information to refine recommendations, and quickly produce policies customized for specific customers on the fly.

Previously, the sales team prepared proposals on their Windows XP-based PCs and then printed them out in order to share with customers. Using the Windows 8 tablets, their sales efforts will be more efficient and the customer experience will be greatly improved. The company also expects to process contracts more quickly, while ensuring customer security is protected and eliminating the need for printed documentation altogether.

Meiji Yasuda has some unique mobile requirements for their business, which is why they partnered with Fujitsu to deliver a custom device that provides the following benefits.

Mobile productivity: Shifting to a mobile platform enables the company to move away from reliance on paper, communicate more effectively with customers through rich and interactive content, and have the full power of a PC connected to their existing corporate assets, providing an “in the office experience” anywhere.

App compatibility: Meiji Yasuda’s existing Windows XP apps, including their life insurance proposal app, are also compatible with Windows 8 and reduced the complexity of upgrading to a mobile tablet form factor.

Multi-Touch + stylus data input: Windows 8 touch and the option for handwritten input using a stylus allows customers to sign documents electronically in a more natural way, which is key for moving their entire customer base from a familiar paper-based model to digital.

Keeping data protected: Meiji Yasuda is able to encrypt customer records and keep them stored centrally, allowing sales personnel to travel with their tablets and access necessary customer data without any security risks.

To learn more about Meiji Yasuda’s Windows 8 experience, check out today’s press release. I also want to remind you that the Windows 8.1 Enterprise Preview is now available for customers to start testing in their environments. Windows 8.1 advances the Windows 8 vision and introduces new mobility, manageability, security, user experience and networking capabilities that will be available later this year. For a full list of the new business features in Windows 8.1, click here.